Bonds of Blood

By Fr. Jerry Pokorsky ( bio - articles - email ) | Jan 06, 2025

The bonds of blood unify families and tribes, but the universal mission of Jesus transcends every tribe and nation. Baptism incorporates us into the Mystical Body of Christ. The universality of the Church unites and informs all nations and every generation.

We see hints of Jesus' universal mission in the Infancy narratives. Jesus is born into the tribe of Judah. The Magi come from afar to worship the newborn King, bringing gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The gifts symbolize His universal rule, His divinity, and His redemptive suffering, as anticipated by the prophets. “All the families of the nations shall worship before him.” (Ps. 22:27)

Jesus appointed twelve apostles to transcend the twelve tribes of Israel. We are brothers and sisters in Christ. “Whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother, and sister, and mother.” (Mt. 12:50) The parable of the Good Samaritan is a stinging indictment of a narrow view of brotherhood based on the bonds of blood alone. The tribe of Jesus transcends tribal bonds with the bond of discipleship in obedience to the Father.

Sometimes wars and revolutions are necessary for tribal and national defense. But Jesus is not a political revolutionary. Before Pilate, He testifies: “My kingship is not of this world; if my kingship were of this world, my servants would fight… For this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice.” (Jn. 18:36-37)

The Church's teaching authority presents Jesus' universal truth to all nations and generations. Born on Pentecost and sustained by the Holy Spirit, the Church is moored to Jesus through the Apostles by Sacred Tradition and Scripture under the watchful guidance of the Magisterium. The Church ordains and commissions priests and bishops to proclaim the truth of Jesus, celebrate the Sacraments, and govern the Church.

The role of the clergy is to teach and guard the universal truths of the Catholic faith with integrity, including the Ten Commandments. The laity applies the universal truths of Jesus to their lives, families, tribes, and nations. With God’s grace, we maintain the appropriate distinctions between binding authentic Church teaching—with the hierarchy as the Church’s guardian—and the prudential judgments proper to the laity.

Success in maintaining these distinctions varies. In 1937, Pius XI rejected the evil tenets of National Socialism even as he carefully avoided naming names. He articulated this universal principle: “Whoever exalts race, or the people, or the State, or a particular form of State ... or any other fundamental value of the human community . . . above their standard value and divinizes them to an idolatrous level, distorts and perverts an order of the world planned and created by God.” This universal principle is valid today.

The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council, during the post-WWII years, taught natural-law principles governing war: “Now that every kind of weapon produced by modern science is used in war, the fierce character of warfare threatens to lead the combatants to a savagery far surpassing that of the past. …orders commanding such actions are criminal, and blind obedience cannot excuse those who yield to them. The most infamous among these are actions designed for the methodical extermination of an entire people, nation or ethnic minority. Such actions must be vehemently condemned as horrendous crimes.” (Vatican II, Gaudium et Spes, 79) This universal principle is valid today.

The Fathers continue: “Any act of war aimed indiscriminately at the destruction of entire cities of extensive areas along with their population is a crime against God and man himself. It merits unequivocal and unhesitating condemnation.” (GS, n. 80) This universal principle is valid today.

Most recognize the post-WWII context of the Vatican II universal teachings, but they critique the behavior and policies of every generation, tribe, and nation. The Fifth Commandment and the natural-law principles of just war apply to all combatants. The reckless and brutal response to aggression that kills tens of thousands of innocent civilians in indiscriminate attacks is criminal.

Sometimes the distinctions between the proper roles of laity and priests are blurred. The last fifty years have seen many examples: priests and religious as civil-rights activists, anti-war protesters, crypto-Communists in Latin America, and priests running for political office. The national bureaucratic arm of the American bishops, the USCCB, hasn’t seen a big government spending program it hasn’t liked. Clear violations of the Commandments often require the prophetic voice of the clergy. However, the clergy frequently fail to maintain the necessary restraint and infringe upon the rights and duties of the laity.

According to their ordained state, the clergy have priestly, prophetic, and kingly roles. Although the universal truths of the Church are sometimes arduous to formulate and apply, it doesn’t cost a priest much to preach them. A priest—except in hostile environments like Communist countries—usually suffers relatively minor inconveniences by preaching the Gospel. He continues to enjoy his salary even if he loses contributions and people leave his parish in a huff.

It is far more costly for the laity to live Gospel truths. Espousing the universal truths of Jesus and natural law may damage salaries and reputations in hostile work environments. Priests are often unaware of the risks lay people face should they express their opposition to immoral policies and behavior in the workplace. (Alas, too many of the clergy are eager to compromise Catholic teaching for “inclusion” purposes.) Should not we expect priests, bishops, and popes to support the embattled laity with clearly enunciated Catholic moral principles?

We do not lose our family, tribal, or national roots as Christians. We transcend the bonds of blood with our Catholic faith. We view the world as Catholic realists and invoke God’s universal natural moral law. We are members of the Tribe of Jesus. He unites us with the bond of His Body and Blood at every Mass.